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Small BodiesStories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.
Opportunity rolls up to Oileán Ruaidh
Opportunity is continuing to make tracks toward Endeavour crater, but just because she's got a goal for her road trip doesn't mean she won't stop and smell the flowers from time to time. Er, did I say
An unusual Hubble photo of Mars
Amateur image magician Ted Stryk dug up this lovely view of Mars, captured on May 9, 2003 by the Hubble Space Telescope. This photo is unusual for its relatively high phase.
Gale Crater Geomorphology Paper - Published!
Big news folks! The huge paper that I've been working on for the last couple years is finally, unbelievably, published!
Opportunity's rocky road ahead, good news for an aging rover
What a difference a couple of months of driving make. Here's the sort of view of the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity's road ahead that I'm accustomed to, taken two months ago.
Mars As Art
Attention Mars data trawlers! NASA Headquarters is looking for community input on an exhibition and book of
Mars Exploration Challenge Launches Today
The explorers who will someday walk on Mars are in school today. Exactly who they are, we don't yet know. But we do know that they are among the students who are captivated by the wonders of science and the challenges of engineering.
Jaded by Mars Organics
So, you may have heard the news making the rounds last week that a new analysis of the Viking data suggests there may actually be organics and (dare I even say it?) life on Mars! Yawn. Consider me underwhelmed.
Getting to the real science image data: It's not that hard!
If I have to, I will drag reluctant people one at a time to plunge into NASA's Planetary Data System.
Bringing MOLA altimetry tracks into Google Mars
I've had a fun morning of noodling around learning how to write KML files, and have produced one for Google Mars that shows you all of the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter tracks that cross the area Opportunity has driven through already, as well as the area of Endeavour crater.
Tracing the Big Picture of Mars' Atmosphere
One of the instruments on a 2016 mission to orbit Mars will provide daily maps of global, pole-to-pole, vertical distributions of the temperature, dust, water vapor and ice clouds in the Martian atmosphere.
A first look at distant hills
Rover fans have been excitedly watching the hills on Opportunity's horizon grow taller and taller as Opportunity rolls toward its destination, Endeavour crater.
Three things to watch
It's high summer (in the northern hemisphere anyway) and many of you may be seeking shelter from the heat. If you need to collapse on the couch and watch TV, I have three space-y recommendations for you.
Molar Tooth Texture
Ok, so remember the weird rock I showed in my Galcier Park geology post?
The Geology of Glacier National Park: Part 1
Well, the field trip is over and I am happy to say that I was not eaten by any bears. They seemed much more interested in the huckleberries.
The enigmatic mounds of Acidalia Planitia
Acidalia Planitia is a large basin in Mars' northern lowlands, a dark splotch visible even from Earth telescopes.
Is Eberswalde Really a Smoking Gun?
The other day in Mars journal club, we took a look at a paper about the
Big Sky Country
Well folks, I'm headed off to Big Sky Country tomorrow (aka Montana)! I'll start the week at the MSL camera team meeting, where I will get all sorts of cool news about the MastCam, MAHLI and MARDI cameras which I will not be able to share with you.
A spectacular new global map of Mars, which YOU can make even better
I am such a nerd. This new map of Mars just brought tears to my eyes. Honestly.
Observing the Martian Atmosphere for Two Mars Years
June 29, 2010 was the second Martian anniversary of the start of Mars Climate Sounder (MCS) observations at Mars.